Grocery stores were among the few places where Montanans could actually visit while under the stay-at-home order from late March to late April, and these specific businesses experienced some good things, some bad things, and catered to the hungry.

At 6-foot-6 with broad shoulders and a deep, husky voice, Tony can be an intimidating force. He has to be, he and his deputies patrol a lot of territory. But under the tough exterior is a gentle man who is well liked and highly respected in his community.

The summer morning was just beginning as Trent Petersen drove down the gravel back roads from Roberts to Joliet. Trent, 17,  was on his way to join the Nobull Cattle Artificial Insemination team. Meeting at Centana Feedyard in Joliet, the team planned to artificially inseminate a group of registered heifers.

Jean is serving up Huckleberry crisp and Dutch Oven dinners this fall!

Working on his own at Livingston Anvil Works, Jem Blueher is something of a rebel. Backed by the might of aged, gritty equipment, he restores rare horse-drawn vehicles, tools, and machinery through rigorous application.

It was a tough blow, but Montanans don’t give up easily. With some ingenuity and a can-do attitude, a few activities continued, albeit a little different than they had been in the past. Here are a few events that found a way to carry on.  

The romance of the story is that just over seven years ago, Evan’s father, John Helle, and Robert “Bernie” Bernthal, a renowned clothing manufacturer, hatched the idea of using Helle wool from the Helle Rambouillet flock to come up with a line of wool clothing that would give consumers 100 percent American-made and -sourced clothing. The men struck a deal while skiing on nearby Maverick Mountain as they shared a chairlift. 

Every day, Virgil climbs the steep steps to his office in the loft of the store and oversees the business that he and his partner J.Q. Robbins founded in 1947. Walking through the door at Gust’s is like stepping into a time machine and turning the dial back 70-plus years, except that the merchandise is perfect for the needs of the small community in 2020.

Hannah Todd walked quietly through the knee-deep grass toward a small herd of cattle. Carrying a bucket of feed and a halter, she stopped and waited as a heifer came forward and pushed her nose into the bucket. Hannah laughed, rubbed the heifer between the ears and down her back and placed the bucket on the ground for her. 

Ephraim Strain led the small parade sitting high atop the bright red-and-yellow stagecoach, his brother, Yoseph rode shotgun. He drove 6 Up, meaning three teams of horses, as they crossed the Yellowstone River bridge and headed into town. 

Bill Brinkel might not live in the country anymore, but country still most definitely defines him. The 90-year-old retired wheat farmer was born and raised near Broadview where he farmed until he was in his late 70s.

Haven Meged remembers roping so late into the night that he and his best friend illuminated the arena with the headlights of three tractors and two trucks. They used a lime green lariat rope so they could see where their loop was heading as they practiced roping young calves. 

Jean Duffey lives at the family homestead where she and her late husband raised five children. After the death of her in-laws and husband, she remodeled the original log home, added on to it, and for years it was a popular bed and breakfast. 

Huckleberry Burger offers a bit of spice to a basic 100% beef burger and Morel Mushrooms coincides with our article on tips for foraging for food in the springtime. Bon appetit! 

Visible from Interstate 90, six miles east of Columbus, Midland Bull Test is a familiar site to anyone accustomed to traveling along that stretch of the road. The long low barn with “Midland” printed in large letters across the roof, and pens filled with cattle, extending out from the barn, might look like most feedlots across the region. But Midland Bull Test is anything but typical. 

Ericka eventually returned to hats, first working under mother, Sheila Kirkpatrick-Massar, a notable hatmaker, who up until a couple of years ago based her business in Twin Bridges. Ericka’s plan was to start her own operation where she lived in Wisdom. For a brief time, mother and daughter worked in two separate locations: Ericka started the hatmaking process and Sheila completed it and fitted all the customers. But after Sheila closed her shop, a series of events yanked Ericka out of Wisdom and pulled her back to Twin Bridges.  

“Unique soaking adventures abound at Norris Hot Springs,” Chris Wilson insisted. “It’s a place like nowhere you’ve seen before.”

Roger Siemens knows more about prairie rattlesnakes than most of the people in Montana. He should. He’s been studying their habits, researching their habitat and living with them for over 25 years. He didn’t set out to be a rattlesnake expert. It was something that happened quite by necessity, or accident, depending on how you look at it.

Backing his horse into the box, Ty Erickson readies himself. With a nod of his head, the chute operator springs the gate open releasing the steer. It bolts into a full run across the arena. 

Ben Swanke of Billings, runs his calloused hands over the back of a newly finished saddle.   He smiles with pride as he explains the many steps and individual parts involved in taking it from a wooden “saddle tree,” covered in rawhide, to a finished saddle.